building of new roswell emergency dispatch center still to be decided

City officials in Roswell, New Mexico may decide in the coming weeks whether to include the construction of a new $420,000 consolidated dispatch center in the city’s new fiscal budget.

The project has been long talked about in the city, with proponents of the facility saying it is needed to provide more efficient emergency services in the metro area.

Construction of the center is one of several projects that may or may not receive funding depending upon the city’s fiscal condition in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak.

According to Roswell sources, the city is currently looking at a 23 percent reduction in tax revenue as a result of the virus.

Earlier, Roswell projected a fund of around $27 million for various facility and infrastructure projects, but that figure is now thought to be down to $21 million, with some estimates suggesting that it could come in at around $18 million in the months ahead.

A city council document said that Roswell has been hit from several directions simultaneously: the formerly vibrant local oil and gas industry is in the throes of a recession, while the COVID-19 lock down has had a devastating impact on tourism-related activity in the area.

Members of the city’s Infrastructure Committee, which serves the city council, have also recently decided to hold off on approving $169,000 for a new roof at the Roswell Public Library; as well as $180,000 to build a cul de sac for what is known as the Habitat Way Court.
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Voters in Roswell earlier this year defeated a proposal to build a $35 million public safety complex in the city that would have also housed a new dispatch center.

​By Garry Boulard

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